Language Access Program

As a step toward a more inclusive planning process, NYMTC’s Language
Access Program provides translation services for people who are not
fluent in English. The Language Access Program is a further enhancement
to NYMTC’s public involvement efforts to increase the accessibility of
information about and input into the regional transportation planning
process.

The 2010 Census identifies an Limited English Proficiency population of roughly 2.2 million people in the NYMTC planning area.

What languages are included in the program?

The United States Census identifies the size and
proportion of Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations in NYMTC’s
planning area. LEP populations are comprised of persons who are unable
to communicate effectively in English because their primary language is
not English and they have not developed fluency in the language. Thus,
people included in LEP populations may have difficulty speaking or
reading English and will benefit from translation to and from their
primary language.

The 2010 Census identifies an LEP population of roughly 2.2 million
people in the NYMTC planning area. Just over 70% of the total LEP
population speaks one of three languages ‒ Spanish, Chinese and Russian
‒ and therefore these three languages are considered as primary LEP
languages in NYMTC’s planning area. An additional thirty one languages
are considered secondary LEP languages.

What services will NYMTC’s Language Access Program provide?

Translations of NYMTC’s core regional planning products and analyses
-- the Regional Transportation Plan; the Transportation Improvement
Program and related Annual Listing of Obligated Projects; the Unified
Planning Work Program; the Congestion Management Process Status Report;
the Transportation Conformity Determination and the Public Involvement
Plan -- in the following manner:

Written executive summaries of the core
regional planning products and analyses will be posted on-line in
the three primary LEP Languages, including both drafts and final
versions that are released publicly;

Drafts and final versions of the executive
summaries that are released publicly will be translated into the
secondary LEP languages upon written or verbal request to NYMTC.

Other publicly-available NYMTC documents will be translated upon written or verbal request for all LEP languages.

These documents may include the Annual Report,
informational brochures that explain NYMTC and its obligations or
elements of its planning process, the Regional Household Travel Survey
report, and descriptive materials and application forms for public
project solicitations under federal funding programs.

Public announcements of meetings, public comment periods, and other public events and announcements
will be posted on-line and distributed with translations of key points
into the three primary languages. They will be fully translated into
any of the LEP languages upon written or verbal request to NYMTC.

Real-time oral and American Sign Language translation services for general public meetings and workshops at
NYMTC’s central office location will be available in the three primary
languages upon request made verbally or in writing 72 hours prior to
the meeting in question.

For general public meetings and workshops at other
meeting locations in NYMTC’s planning area, a separate Census analysis
of the area around the location will be performed and translation into
languages meeting the 5% threshold will be made available upon request
made verbally or in writing 72 hours prior to the meeting in question.

Real-time oral language assistance will be provided through an on-call translation service in person at NYMTC’s central office or by calling 212-383-7200.

For planning projects and studies funded through NYMTC’s planning process in specifically-defined study areas of the NYMTC region, the Language Access Program will provide a similar level of assistance for identified LEP populations.
A Census analysis for the specific project/study area
will be undertaken to identify LEP populations to establish thresholds
for language assistance, including primary and secondary languages.
Notice of availability of language assistance services will then be
provided in the project/study area.

Core documents will be designated for the project or
study. Written executive summaries of the core documents will be posted
on-line in the primary LEP languages, including both drafts and final
versions that are released publicly. Drafts and final versions of the
core document executive summaries that are released publicly will be
translated into the secondary LEP languages upon written or verbal
request to NYMTC.

Others assistance will include public announcements of
meetings, public comment periods, and other public events and
announcements related to the project/study, which will be posted
on-line and distributed with translations of key points into the
primary languages and will be translated fully into all LEP languages
upon written or verbal request to NYMTC.

Real-time oral and American Sign Language translation
services for public meetings and workshops at locations in the
project/study area will be available for the primary LEP languages upon
request made verbally or in writing 72 hours prior to the meeting in
question. Real-time oral language assistance will be provided through
an on-call translation service by calling 212-383-7200.

How do I access these Language Access Program services?

If you need information in another language or have questions, please call 212-383-7200 and someone will be able to assist you.

Title VI Notice to the Public: The New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC) hereby gives public notice that it is the policy of the Council to assure full compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, Executive Order 12898 on Environmental Justice, and related statutes and regulations in all programs and activities. Title VI requires, and it is our policy, that no person in the United States of America shall, on the grounds of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination under any program or activity for which NYMTC receives federal financial assistance.
Any person who believes they have been aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice under Title VI has a right to file a formal complaint. Any such complaint must be filed in writing or in person with NYMTC’s Title VI Officer within one hundred eighty (180) days from the date of the alleged discriminatory act or upon notice of the discriminatory act.

Title VI discrimination complaint forms may be obtained from the NYMTC website: www.nymtc.org or by calling 212‐383‐7200. If information is needed in another language,
contact: 212‐383‐7200 and Email: NYMTC-Web@dot.ny.gov .